EPF, PTPTN, BNPL, takaful, SOCSO and AKPK explained
Six Malaysian money words, and where to check them.
A payslip in Malaysia comes with its own small dictionary. Some of the words turn up on your first job, some turn up at a checkout page, and some only when a letter arrives.
DECADES uses six of them again and again. Here is what each one means in real life, taken from the official page of the body behind it, and the card where the game puts it in front of you.
The official pages change. If a rule matters to you, read the page itself, not this post.
EPF (KWSP)
The Employees Provident Fund, or KWSP in Malay, was set up in 1951 to look after the retirement of Malaysia's workers, as its About Us page says. Each month both the worker and the employer pay into it.
For a Malaysian under 60 earning RM5,000 a month or less, the EPF's contribution page for employers gives the current rates as 11% for the worker and 13% for the employer, with the actual amount read off EPF's contribution schedule rather than worked out as a plain percentage. The page says these rates apply from October 2025 wages, so check it for the rates that apply to you today.
In DECADES, part of every salary goes into a locked EPF pot, and the card "EPF unlocks at 55" asks whether to take it all at once, take it as monthly payments, or leave it growing.
PTPTN
PTPTN is the National Higher Education Fund Corporation. Its education loan page says the loan helps students at local public and private universities and colleges pay all or part of their fees and living costs while they study.
The loan has to be paid back. PTPTN's repayment page says borrowers should start repaying 12 months after the loan disbursement period ends, without waiting for a repayment notice to arrive.
In DECADES, a graduate meets "The PTPTN letter": repayment starts next month, a coursemate says nobody pays, and one choice is to ask PTPTN for a smaller monthly plan.
BNPL
BNPL means buy now, pay later: you take the item today and pay for it in parts. Since 1 March 2026, Malaysia's Consumer Credit Act 2025 has been in force, and it set up a new regulator, the Consumer Credit Commission, or Suruhanjaya Kredit Pengguna.
The Commission's statement says BNPL companies must get a licence from it. It also says the licensing rules take effect on 1 June 2026, with six months for companies to apply.
In DECADES, the card "Four easy payments" offers headphones for RM 480 today, or four payments of RM 130 with a processing fee in the small grey text.
Takaful
Takaful is protection built on Shariah principles. Malaysia's Islamic Financial Services Act 2013, which Bank Negara Malaysia publishes on its website, describes it as an arrangement of mutual help: participants pay into a common fund that pays out when agreed events happen.
Bank Negara sets the rules for insurance and takaful companies, listed on its insurance and takaful page. And according to PIDM, licensed Malaysian insurance companies and takaful operators covered by the relevant financial services laws are compulsory members, and eligible benefits are protected for free, within PIDM's limits and conditions, if a member can no longer operate.
In DECADES, the card "Takaful or insurance?" puts two agents side by side, one offering takaful medical cover at RM 95 a month and one offering insurance at RM 85.
SOCSO (PERKESO)
SOCSO, or PERKESO in Malay, is the Social Security Organisation. Its Employment Injury Scheme protects a worker against accidents and work-related illness, including some accidents on the way between home and work.
Its Employment Insurance System, called LINDUNG KERJAYA, started on 1 January 2018. It pays some income to insured people who lose their jobs, who must apply within 60 days of losing the job.
In DECADES, the card "The tiny line called SOCSO" shows those few ringgit on your payslip and asks whether you want to find out what they buy.
AKPK
AKPK is the Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency. Its introduction page says it was set up in April 2006 to help people take control of their money, and that all its services are free for individuals and small businesses.
One of those services is the Debt Management Programme, for people who are struggling with their monthly repayments. The page says the programme ends on its own if three monthly payments in a row are missed.
In DECADES, the card "The free door for debt" arrives when the card balances have crept up and a colleague mentions AKPK.
The game is fiction
DECADES is a game. The prices, the pay, the loans and every number on its cards are made up, and the game's rules are not the real rules of any fund, loan or scheme. Nothing here is advice about your own money. For anything real, go to the official pages linked above.
Play it
Meet all six words in one life. Play DECADES in your browser, free and with no sign-up.
Teachers can use these cards in class with the 40-minute lesson on the teachers page.